Six health institutes to come under one roof

Star: KUCHING: Six research institutes under the Health Ministry will be brought together under one roof to better serve the people.
The institutes for Medical Research, and of Public Health, Health Management, Health System Management, Health Behaviour Research and Clinical Research Centre will be housed in the proposed 1National Institutes of Health (1NIH) integrated complex in Setia Alam, Shah Alam. They are currently spread all over town.
Health Deputy Director-General Datuk Dr Maimunah Abdul Hamid disclosed that the Cabinet had approved the project which would be developed in a few years. The building cost has not yet been ascertained.
“We want all the six research institutes under the ministry under one roof,” she told reporters after opening the state Health Research Day in conjunction with Sarawak General Hospital’s 100th anniversary yesterday. “They were spread out because they were created one after the other.”
She said it was important for these centres to come together since health issues were interconnected.
“A lot of problems are not answered by one research question.
“Take dengue, for example. It involves research on the virus itself, people’s behaviour and how to deal with it.
“It’s all integrated,” she said.
Dr Maimunah also said the ministry would work with the tourism sector to promote healthcare to foreigners, especially those in the region and the Middle East.